The Wrong Journalist

by Andrew Norris
norris@jove.rutgers.edu
August 24, 2001

The "headline news" on this morning's "encore" Democracy Now!, WBAI 9 am, was unusual.   First, a strange voice, with the lead story on Condit, mentioning the 30 minute interview with Chung/ABC, with a taped piece of Condit. It could have been any drive time radio news.  What impressed me was the WBAI morning show hosts only a half hour earlier talking about how WBAI would never stoop to the level of the Condit story etc.

Anyway, there were more strange voices, and names of the reporters for this "headline" news, like Judith Smelser and Jessie Brandon, names I did not recognize.   it turns out they are employees of Feature Story News  where they are listed under "Meet the Team".  What was more interesting was that the "team" includes names that have been heard on Pacifica Network News, including Nathan King, Georgina Cooper  (New York correspondents for FSN),  Malcolm Brown, Simon Marks and Catherine Drew (Washington) and Alistair Wanklyn (London), Paul Miller (Paris).

There is more on FSN at http://www.savepacifica.net/strike/fsn.html

The web site for Feature Story news http://www.fsntv.com/ lists clients, including:
PACIFICA NETWORK NEWS  - but not Democracy Now!
Other clients include:
ABC - note the promotion for ABC yesterday and today on the "encore"
Democracy Now!
BLOOMBERG
FOX NEWS
RADIO VATICAN
SKY NEWS (Murdoch)
Summit TV - South Africa's business channel http://www.summittv.co.za/
Voice of America
 
 

More False News Sources

by Gary Novosielski
gary@novosielski.com
From their web site at http://www.fsntv.com :

"Feature Story News, the world's leading independent broadcast agency, offers a unique service in the news industry. We provide ready-to-air television and radio news material, tailored to individual on-air styles, and today more than 50 clients rely on FSN for their international news coverage. Every story we supply is different: produced and edited to suit your program's on-air style, delivered by your deadline, and complete with your sign-off."

Their list of clients is instructive.  It includes such progressive outlets as:
Fox
Bloomberg
British Armed Forces
the Vatican
Voice of America which broadcast on the following:

"ABC RADIO NEWS
ALLHERB.COM
AUDIBLE.COM
BBC NEWS
BLUE DANUBE RADIO
BRITISH FORCES BROADCASTING
SERVICE
BLOOMBERG NEWS RADIO
CHANNEL 4 NEWS
CHANNEL NEWS ASIA
FOX NEWS
GLOBAL TV NEWS
IRN
ITN
KTSA
LBC RADIO
MARKETPLACE
MINNESOTA PUBLIC RADIO
NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO
NBC/MUTUAL
NETWORK RADIO SERVICES
THE NEWSHOUR
WITH JIM LEHRER
NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT
PACIFICA NETWORK NEWS
PUBLIC RADIO INTERNATIONAL
RADIO DEUTSCHE WELLE
RADIO FRANCE INTERNATIONAL
RADIO VATICAN
TV NEW ZEALAND
RADIO NEW ZEALAND
RELGION AND ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY
RTE IRELAND
SABC TELEVISION
SABC RADIO NEWS
SAFM RADIO
SRN
SKY NEWS
SUMMIT TV
VOA"